1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of ecommerce and pertains particularly to methods and apparatus for interfacing with special needs consumers, consumer advocates and doctors and other medical person to enable custom configuration and ordering of communications devices that meet certain needs of a user.
2. Discussion of the State of the Art
In the field of ecommerce, companies sell products through Websites to consumers. This method of interfacing with consumers is practiced in addition to telephone sales, order desks and walk-in order desks. Electronics devices such as communications devices, including cellular telephones, typically have form factors that vary little if at all, and consumers purchase these devices based on pricing and available features.
It is known in the art to provide an interactive interface enabling a client to browse features of a product for sale, and to configure a product using available features, and then to order the product. Automobile manufacturers, for example, have web sites where a potential customer may select a model, select among engine options, tire options, color options, upholstery options, and the like to configure an automobile for purchase, and then place an order for the customized automobile. This sort of selective variability in features is not widely available, however, in the area of telephony devices, such as cellular telephones.
The inventor has identified a problem in the art of communications device marketing and manufacturing in that these products are not user friendly to persons that have special needs and cannot use, or have some trouble using existing features of such devices. For example, a person that has dexterity problems may require a communications device that is larger and has larger keys on a keypad. A person with hearing issues may require a communications device with a higher range of volume, or a device with entry by Braille. A person with neuropathy in the hands and fingers may require a touch screen with less sensitivity than is typically provided in touch screens.
Special needs described above deter or prevent many potential consumers from ordering or using communications devices from companies having limited choices of available features.
Therefore, what is clearly needed is an enterprise that can provide telephony devices with a wide variety of special features for persons with special needs, and an interface allowing selection and configuration of devices among the variety of available features.